Game apparatus



Sept. .29, 1925; 5 1,555,125

' L. E. LANGE GAME APPARATUS Filed-Rb. 14. 1924 "Mum" IIIHHII Patented gepto 29, 1925.

PATENT orrics.

LOUIS EMIL LANGE, OF

KINGSTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

GAME APFARATUS.

Application filed February 14, 192%. Serial No. 692,820.

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, Louis E. Larson, a citizen of the United States, residing at Forty Fort, Kingston P. 0., in the county of Luzerne and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to games.

The object is to provide a game apparatus which may be used by children who are in the early school stages whereby, while playing the game, they may improve their knowledge of the spelling of words, and at r the same time be highly entertained in a beneficial manner.

Another object is to provide such a device in an apparatus which is simple of construction, easy to operate, having no complicated parts and no intricate rules of the game, and which may be cheaply manufactured and sold-at a low cost, and may be played by two or more players.

A full and complete understanding of the invention may be obtained from a consideration of the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, it being understood that while the drawing shows a practical form of the invention, the latter is not to be confined to strict conformity with the showing thereof but may be changed or modified, so long as such changes or modifications mark no r material departure from the salient features of the invention, as specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures- Figure 1 is a plan View of the improved game apparatus;

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view through the same; and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view of a portion of a list of printed words to be used in connection with the game apparatus.

The device comprises a base board 1 which may be formed of heavy paste-board, wood, tin or any other suitable material capable of holding its shape, to rest flat upon a table or other support. The base board, as illustrated in the drawing, is preferably square when adapted for use in an apparatus to be played by four or less players, but said base board may be of hexagonal shape, as

for six or less players, or octagonal as for eight or less players, or the same may be round and subdivided properly for a greater number of players.

Located at the exact center of the base board 1 is a pivotal pin or post '2, which may be fixed in position in any approved manner, depending upon the kind of material used to form the said board, said posthaving its lower head flush with the lower face of the board and extending above the upper surface of the same.

Rotatably mounted upon the post 2 is a disc 3 of a diameter somewhat less than the diameter of the base board, and having a central boss or washer a on its under face to space the disc from the base board and permit the same to freely revolve about the pivot when given a spinning motion by the hand of the operator, the upper end of the pivot being preferably riveted or upset, as shown, to prevent the disc from being removed from the said pivot.

Pointers 5, preferably in the form of arrows, are imprinted on the upper face of the base board, and have their indicating points directed inwardly toward the pivotand registering with the circular edge of the disc, the number of pointers depending on the size and shape of the base board. The square board illustrated has four of such pointers located at the centers of the sides thereof so as to be played by four or less players, whereas the hexagonal or octagonal base board would have an inwardly directed arrow or pointer located at each side there of, and the round board may have as many pointers as desired equally spaced about the margin of the same. The remaining surface of the base board may have ornamental designs printed or painted thereon, or may have the directions for playing the game or other useful information printed on the same. 1

The upper face of the revolving disc 3 is divided by a plurality of diametrical lines 6 into a series of equal spaces tapering toward the central pivot 2, and printed in said spaces, in vertical columns at the center thereof, are letters of the alphabet 7. In the drawing there is shown ten of such spaces and by placing three letters, not in proper alphabetical relation to each other, in each column, except one (which has only two letters therein), it will be seen that the entire alphabet is utilized and that one entire column remains and this column has numerals 8 of any denomination imprinted therein. There the larger base board is concerned, a larger disc may be used and the columns so spaced as to utilize two or three or more alphabets, with more or less letters in irregular order in each column, and also more than one column of numerals may be interposed in the series of columns.

ccompanying the game board and adapted to be packed with the same when purchased, is a list of words printed on a separate sheet of paper, said words being divided into columns of words having two, three, four, live or six or more letters therein, and after this initial list has been used, the players may write new lists as often as desired containing columns of words having any desired number of letters therein, as indicated in Figure 3 of the drawing. This preparation of new lists requires the child to consult the dictionary, which in itself constitutes a means for training the mind of the child and develops a persistence in the perusal of the pages thereof, in search of the words of the required number of letters, in order that the game may be pro ceeded with, or short sentences may be employed.

In playing the game, as illustrated in the drawing, two, three or four players sit at the four sides of the base board with a pointer 5 directly in front of him or her. After each player has selected a different word of the same number of letters, the first player spins the disc 3, and if the latter stops revolving with a column of letters, or the space occupied thereby between the lines 6, in registering relation to his or her arrow, the next player follows with a spin, and so on, until one of the players spins and the column of numerals stops at his or her pointer, when said player has a second spin and the game begins. If the said player now spins and the disc stops with a column having a letter corresponding to a letter in his or her selected word, such letter is cancelled and the player has another spin. If a dividing line 6 stops at the pointer the player has another spin but if, on the contrary, a column registers in which there: is no corresponding letter in the selected word, the next player to the right has a turn, and so on around the board until one of the players has cancelled all of the letters of his or her selected word, and such player wins the game. The printed list of words accompanying the game may be used for cancellation purposes, after which other lists may be made up as above stated, or said printed list may be preserved and only used for selecting the words from, each child or player writing his or her word on a separate piece of paper for cancellation of the letters.

From the foregoing it will be seen that simple, cheaply manufactured, and highly amusing and instructive game has been provided which will serve to train children in learning the letters of the alphabet, in the spelling of words and in looking up new words in the dictionary, thereby learning more or less of the definitions of the same.

hat is claimed is 1. A combined game apparatus and educational appliance for use in learning to spell simple words, which are predetermined for each player, comprising a stationary base board having stationary pointers there on pointing toward the center, one for each player, a single revoluble disk concentrically pivoted on the base between the pointers, radially disposed lines indicated on the disk, and radial columns of difi'erent letters of the alphabet between the lines, any one of the columns being adapted to register with one of the pointers when the disk comes to rest, and should any one of the letters in the column registering with the pointer correspond with the desired letter in the word assigned to the player operating the disk, the said player is entitled to another spin of the disk until all the letters of the selected word have been indicated in their turn. 1

2. A combined game apparatus and educational appliance for use in learning to spell simple words, which are predetermined for each player, comprising a stationary base board having stationary pointers thereon pointing toward the center, one for each player, a single revoluble disk concentrically pivoted on the base between the pointers, radially disposed lines indicated on the disk, and radial columns of different letters of the alphabet between the lines, and a radial column of numerals, any one of the columns being adapted to register with one of the pointers when the disk comes to rest, and should any one of the letters in the column. registering with the pointer correspond with the desired letter in the word assigned to the player operating the disk, the said player is entitled to another spin of the disk until all the letters of the selected word have been indicated in their turn, the column of numerals indicating the order of turn of the different players.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signa' ture.

LOUIS EMIL LANGE. 

